EA reveals Battlefield 4 headed to PC this fall, refuses to confirm next-gen (video)
This year’s Battlefield series entry — Battlefield 4 — is headed to PCs this fall. The game wasn’t given other platforms, but logic dictates it’ll arrive on the PlayStation 4 and Microsoft’s Xbox 360 successor. Apparently, since only Sony’s next-gen console is a known quantity and Microsoft’s staying mum, EA isn’t sharing other platforms yet (but hey, it’s probably PlayStation 4 and the next Xbox). The game’s being built on the latest iteration of DICE’s Frostbite engine, though no other details were given about the engine just yet.
Like previous Battlefield entries, EA-owned Swedish game studio DICE is at the helm, and Battlefield 4 remains planted in current times (unlike the pseudo-future of Call of Duty‘s latest entry, Black Ops 2). A beta for the game will go live some time this fall, and folks who bought last year’s Medal of Honor: Warfighter are automatically part of said beta. We’ll have more info as EA offers it up, but color us not surprised if Battlefield 4 makes a reprise appearance at Microsoft’s still undated Xbox 360 successor unveiling.
Update: EA also released a 17-minute gameplay demo of the game’s prologue section, played on a PC. It features a squad of four soldiers on the run from Russian spec-ops militants in the capital of Azerbaijan, Baku. You’ll find it just beyond the break.
Filed under: Gaming, Software, HD
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GameStick reveals final backer-aided design, dock for peripherals
Now that the Android-powered game console on a stick, GameStick, has been fully funded (five times over), another piece of the puzzle is falling into place: its final design. Taking suggestions from the Kickstarter backers that supported the device in the first place, the final design of the controller reflects, “a more ergonomic form with extended grips and a tapered shape to better sit in the hand.” The HDMI stick that previous popped out from the bottom of the controller now rests around back — it’s now got a MicroSD slot built in as well, allowing up to 32GB of expandable memory (bringing the maximum of expandable memory up to 104GB — that’s a lot of Android games).
A docking station is also in the cards, which enables a whole mess of peripherals via USB, HDMI, and ethernet ports — it’s powered separately, so you can charge your GameStick controller without having to turn on the console. You can also charge your controller on it wirelessly, according to PlayJam. All said, it’s got one ethernet port, a full size SD card reader, three USB ports, and three HDMI ports (one out, two in), and comes as part of an option $109 bundle on the Kickstarter page. As for its sale price separately from the GameStick, PlayJam’s staying mum for now.
Gallery: GameStick (final)
GAMESTICK UNVEILS FINAL DESIGN INSPIRED BY KICKSTARTER COMMUNITY
London & San Francisco; January 29th, 2013; As the GameStick Kickstarter campaign (http://kck.st/12SSvMO) enters its final few days, the team announce their final designs of the device as well as a new docking station for every peripheral conceivable.
GameStick; Kickstarter´s most recent success story, currently sits at over 500% of its original target with over $500K raised at the time of writing. The team waits on tenterhooks to discover the final figure to be revealed at 04:23 PST on Friday 1st February.
“It´s hard to believe that we launched GameStick just a few short weeks ago. The Kickstarter campaign has been a roller coaster of a ride and one which has given us more feedback than we could ever have possibly imagined.” says PlayJam´s CMO, Anthony Johnson, “We have been able to take that input and literally better shape our product to give our backers a truly bespoke creation – one which has been designed by the Kickstarter community that backed it.”
The new design sees subtle changes to the controller, which gets a more ergonomic form with extended grips and a tapered shape to better sit in the hand. The housing for the HDMI stick has been moved to the rear of the controller and the stick itself now supports an expandable 32GB MicroSD card slot in response to overwhelming demand. The finish has also been meticulously designed meet the highest of standards.
Additional requests from the backer community resulted last week in the GameStick team announcing support for peripheral hardware through a previously unspecified docking station. The dock brings on board a number of sought after features such as; wire-free charging for the controller, a number of USB and HDMI ports to support peripheral hardware such as keyboards, mice, microphones and cameras as well as support for yet more storage bringing the total potential capacity of the bundle up to 104GB.
“The GameStick Dock is a prime example of how we have moved rapidly to innovate while still in the pre-production phase,” continued Johnson, “it has made for a ‘hairy’ 30 days but we think the results are worth it and we are delighted that we have been able to tailor the product as much as we have in such a short time-frame”
The GameStick Kickstarter campaign has reached its first two stretch goals with just under $60K to go to hit it´s third and final stretch which will add a number of colour options to its range; a target the team hopes to hit before close. Backers have been urged to vote for their favourite colours on the GameStick Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/GameStickNews) in a poll to establish the final color.
To visit the Kickstarter page and pledge your support, please visit: http://kck.st/12SSvMO
To visit the GameStick website for more information or to apply for an SDK please go to: www.gamestick.tv
To follow GameStick news, join the conversation and give your opinion on Facebook or Twitter please go: www.facebook.com/GameStickNews and www.twitter.com/Game_Stick / @Game_Stick
To subcribe to YouTube,please go to: www.youtube.com/GameStickVideos
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Leave a commentMcGraw-Hill reveals the SmartBook: an ‘adaptive’ e-book for students
McGraw-Hill is taking on the one-size-fits-all approach to textbooks with its freshly unveiled SmartBook: an e-book that is claimed to adapt to student’s learning patterns. Aimed at college students, the SmartBook service peppers users with questions as they read and determines what topics it should present to reinforce learning. Come sometime this spring, the SmartBook will be available for more than 90 course areas starting at $20. It’ll be joined by a handful of similar tools for driving home the curriculum, including something called LearnSmart Achieve, which is designed to serve up videos and other interactive embellishments in response to automatically detected areas of weakness. When you’re ready to hit the books, just be careful they don’t hit you back.
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Sony reveals Japan prices for Windows 8 VAIO machines, including Tap 20 and Duo 11
With Windows 8 finally launching in less than four weeks, it’s only a matter of time before the web is flooded with prices of upcoming PCs, the first among which this month hail from Sony VAIO’s Japan branch. Starting with the Duo 11 slider PC, it’s expected to go for about ¥150,000 ($1,930) when it launches in Japan on October 26th (alongside Windows 8), and it’ll come with a 1080p display, 1.7GHz Core i5-3317U, 128GB SSD, 4GB RAM and WiMAX. Then we have three flavors of the Tap 20 portable all-in-one which will range from about ¥140,000 ($1,800) up to about ¥180,000 ($2,310) come November 3rd, with the main differences being the CPU (1.8GHz Core i3-3217U, 1.7GHz Core i5-3317U or 1.9GHz Core i7-3517U) and the RAM (4GB or 8GB), but all three will feature the same 20-inch 1,600 x 900 display and 1TB hard drive.
Also announced at the Tokyo event are Japan prices for three more existing VAIO models that now feature a touchscreen: ¥130,000 ($1,670) for the T Series 13 laptop with Core i5-3317U, ¥150,000 ($1,920) for the VAIO E Series 14P laptop with Core i5-3210M, and from ¥210,000 ($2,700) to ¥240,000 ($3,080) for the VAIO L Series 24-inch all-in-one with Core i7-3630QM and 1080p display. The two laptops will be available in Japan from October 26th, whereas the all-in-one will join in from November 3rd.
There’s no indication as to whether the US prices will match their Japanese counterparts (the former are usually a lot cheaper), but hey, stay tuned here and you’ll know as soon as we do.
Sony reveals Japan prices for Windows 8 VAIO machines, including Tap 20 and Duo 11 originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 01 Oct 2012 02:29:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Google Maps creation put under the microscope, reveals a human touch
They say you should never learn how the sausage gets made, but we’re willing to make an exception for Google Maps. Talking to The Atlantic, Google has revealed just how much the human element figures into all that collected satellite imagery and road data. Many pieces of terrain information are tested and modified against what Google calls Ground Truth: actual driving, alternate sources and sign photos automatically extracted from Street View runs. Google isn’t just making the occasional correction, either. Mapping a country can take hundreds of staff plugging away at the company’s Atlas tool, even before we get a crack with Google Map Maker. The combination of man and machine helps explain why Google Maps is one of the most accurate sources of location information on Earth — although the firm does have some catching up to do in space.
Filed under: GPS, Internet, Alt
Google Maps creation put under the microscope, reveals a human touch originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 08 Sep 2012 05:37:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Leave a commentSamsung T699 for T-Mobile teased in UAProf, reveals 720p display
No doubt, T-Mobile is in the middle of a rebuilding stage as a result of the AT&T merger attempt. Should it be much of a surprise, then, that the carrier would be looking at cranking out a smartphone lineup full of tempting options? Not at all. It turns out that Samsung is making some contributions to the cause, as a UAProf file for the unannounced T699 has been discovered. Just like most user agent profiles, there’s little to discern here aside from the obvious inclusion of a 720p HD display — but at least this lets us know that the handset exists, and that we have something new to look forward to on T-Mobile. Check out the source if you want to do some deciphering of your own.
Samsung T699 for T-Mobile teased in UAProf, reveals 720p display originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 14 May 2012 13:08:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Planetary Resources reveals plan for prospecting asteroids, creating interstellar gas stations
The cat got let out of the bag a little early, but Planetary Resources has now officially announced its existence and mission. We already told you that the venture plans to mine asteroids for profit, and is backed by a bunch of bigwigs from Silicon Valley and Hollywood. But now we know a bit more about the company after watching its announcement webcast and speaking with co-founder Peter Diamandis. Turns out, the company sees itself not only as a business venture, but as an entity that will pave the way for extending human influence throughout the solar system. Read on after the break for more.
Planetary Resources reveals plan for prospecting asteroids, creating interstellar gas stations originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 24 Apr 2012 16:44:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Leave a commentIt’s okay to peek: phone size comparison tool reveals how your equipment stacks up
See any trend emerging here? Yes, we agree that Google’s phones are getting hotter with each generation, but that’s not the answer we’re looking for. Here’s a hint: if you examine the above image really closely, you might also discover a progression toward larger handsets. In all seriousness, the above comparison was generated by phone-size.com, a website that’s quite useful to study the relative proportions of different smartphones. But wait, it gets even better. At the top of the webpage, you’ll also find a toolbar to plug in the size and aspect ratio of your display. Once you jump through this minor hoop, the utility produces accurate, life-size depictions of the smartphones — go ahead and hold your slab up to the screen, it really works. Before you dive in, however, be sure to hop the break: we’ve put together an entertaining look at the Xperia Mini, Titan and Streak 5 that you won’t want to miss.
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It’s okay to peek: phone size comparison tool reveals how your equipment stacks up originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 26 Jan 2012 14:06:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Belkin reveals Advance N900 DB router, keeps your MW3 marathon top priority with IntelliStream
Belkin reveals Advance N900 DB router, keeps your MW3 marathon top priority with IntelliStream originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 08 Jan 2012 12:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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LG reveals Z330 / Z430 Ultrabooks, P535 / A540 laptops and 3D-enabled V300 all-in-one PC
Woo, boy. The Ultrabook flood has officially begun, and LG’s marching into CES with a fresh pair of the things. Four new laptop models and an all-in-one PC will be making their way to Vegas, with the Z330 and Z430 Ultrabooks leading the way. The P535 and A540 take a more traditional approach, while the V300 steps in as a 23-inch AIO for those who still haven’t found solace in mobility. If you’ll recall, we’d actually heard about a few of these last month, but now the company’s getting official with the parts within. The Z330 will house a Core i7 processor, a 13.3-inch HD display, an SSD and an enclosure that weighs but 2.66 pounds. The 14-inch Z430 is outfitted similarly, sitting in a 19.9mm chassis and boasting a metallic cover with a “gyro-brush line finish.” The 15.6-inch P535 gets a Core i7, GeForce GT 630M and a wide-angle display, while the A540 grabs a GeForce GT 555M and a glasses-free 3D display. Closing up the loop, the revised V300 gains a 1080p Film Patterned Retarder (FPR) 3D panel, which should entice just about one in every eight hundred average Joes you know. The whole lot is expected to ship in Q1, but pricing remains a mystery.
LG reveals Z330 / Z430 Ultrabooks, P535 / A540 laptops and 3D-enabled V300 all-in-one PC originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 04 Jan 2012 22:33:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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